Cracked A/C Compressor Casing (2000 Civic)

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pepeloh - 20 Sep 2004 13:43 GMT

My wife's 2000 Civic's A/C recently quit cooling. Everything appears to be
working fine except for the cooling. We are the first owner and have had
virtually no problem with it, other than the the normal maintenance.

In any event, upon inspecting under the hood, we noticed that the casing
on the A/C compressor had cracked. There are still pieces of the casing
lodged in the mounting backet of the compressor. We tried looking on the
Web for recalls but did see any. We are curious if anyone had similar
problems. We also like to know if this could be a manufacturer defects
since it seems unusual for a normal wear and tear to resulting in a
cracked casing.

We have made an appointment at the dealer to have the car checked out next
week but wishes to get a little more informed of the situation.

Thank you in advance for any help or suggestions.

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bigwrenchrob - 20 Oct 2004 18:08 GMT

I had the same problem on my Dad's 1999 Civic. The compressor was toast.
Took it in to the dealer and they said it was past the warranty, as I'm sure
your's is too. Cost of replacement is upwards of CDN$ 1500.00 That's
US$1200.00 if you're living below the great white north.

Just the compressor alone is $1000.00 I got a refurbished one at a
reputable used dealer for 250.00. While I was at it I replaced the
receiver/dryer for 100.00. (new)

It's not really that much work if you're mechanically inclined. Take it to a
garage first to get them to evacuate the system properly. When you're
finished the job, take it back and get them to recharge it.

Dad's works great now, not that we've needed it much this year.

Signature

Robert Gray
"I Haven't Lost My Mind - It's
Backed Up On Disk Somewhere"

> My wife's 2000 Civic's A/C recently quit cooling. Everything appears to be
> working fine except for the cooling. We are the first owner and have had
[quoted text clipped - 12 lines]
>
> Thank you in advance for any help or suggestions.

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Chip Stein - 21 Oct 2004 04:43 GMT

> > In any event, upon inspecting under the hood, we noticed that the casing
> > on the A/C compressor had cracked. There are still pieces of the casing
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
> > since it seems unusual for a normal wear and tear to resulting in a
> > cracked casing.

i've seen a few, in any event if the compressor grenaded replace
the compressor, condenser, expansion valve and reciever.
you can't ever reliably flush a cross flow condenser!!
replace just the compresser and we'll see you in 6 months with
your message about repeated compressor failure.
Chip

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pepeloh - 06 Nov 2004 16:52 GMT

Thank you all you kind folks for responding. As is the case, the
compressor is out of factory warranty. However, we do have extended
warranty through the dealer when we first bought the car. They replaced
the compressor along with other related parts, our cost is simply the $50
deductible; and so we thought.

As it turns out, the insurance is refusing to pay for 2lbs of Freon due to
some miscommunications between the service tech and the insurance
representative. So, the dealer stuck us with an additional $50 dollars
for Freon to cover mistakes not of ours?!?!?! (Bunch of crooks! Last I
check 1lb of Freon does not cost $25!!). To make a long story short, I
have made my complains all the way to the service director without any
satisfactory answer. I guess my only recourse is to talk to Mr. Gillman
about how messed up his service organization had become. So, if anyone
reading this in the Houston, TX area, I would not recommend you taking
your business to Gillman Honda. We had bought the car from them and had
always went back for maintenance, even oil change, and this is how they
treat their loyal customer.

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Know-It-All@knows-nothing.net - 06 Nov 2004 18:20 GMT

Gillman Honda (Houston, TX) is quite well known to the Texas State
Attorney General's office. It's been suggested that they operate right on
the razor's edge of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act and were even
booted out of the Better Business Bureau a few years ago. If you're
looking for a Honda or needing service on one, Gillman's is probably not
the best place to go ... that is, unless you're an attorney and know how
to deal with businesses like theirs. Even if you bought your Honda from
them, you might be better off letting some other dealership handle your
service.

If you'd like to vent, you can email Ramsay Gillman (President of the
Gillman companies... some 18 dealership) at <rgillman@gillmanauto.com> Or
you can direct your fury to their Cheif Operating Officer, Scott Dupons
at <gillman@gillmanauto.com>. Sons Jason and Christopher Gillman are both
vice-presidents of the operation and can be reached by emailing the same
address, <gillman@gillmanauto.com>.

However, I can tell you up-front that CALLING and emailing is apt to
accomplish nothing. If you have complaints, those complaints need to be
put in writing and sent via certified mail, not sent in email. I would
also caution you when writing your complaint letter(s) to be nice, stay on
topic and succinctly and briefly state your complaint. Going off into an
emotional diatribe will only get your letter tossed into the circular
file.

For mailed complaints, write to the 4 folks above at

    Gillman Companies Corporate Office
    Attn: (pick 1 of the above)
    10595 West Sam Houston Parkway South
    Houston, TX 77099

>Thank you all you kind folks for responding. As is the case, the
>compressor is out of factory warranty. However, we do have extended
[quoted text clipped - 14 lines]
>always went back for maintenance, even oil change, and this is how they
>treat their loyal customer.

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